Unitary paper towelling rack



Dec. 8, 1964 w. c. MONAHAN 3,160,361

UNITARY PAPER TOWELLING RACK Filed Aug. 2l, 1962 Lex f /a l@l lfllf fR,a6 as 52\ @"20 52 IIIL X -m'eweo s2 I v4: AIl..

United States Patent Oiice 3,169,351 Patented Dec. 8, 1964 3,166,361UNITARY PAPER TQWELLING RACK Wiiliam C. Monahan, 196 Seaton Road,Stamford, Conn. Filed Aug. 21, 1962, Ser. No. 21%,239 8 Claims. (Ci.242-552) This invention generally pertains to wall-mounted supports forarticles in the form of rolls of sheet material, such as paper, andparticularly to paper towelling racks.

It is a common sight in the average kitchen to see a wall-mounted papertowelling rack for supporting rolls of paper towelling. Most known papertowelling racks are formed of metal, as by being stamped, or of plasticmaterials, as by being molded. The iield is highly competitive, andheretofore, plastic racks have been extremely popular. However, allknown plastic racks are formed of a plurality of components which areindividually molded and assembled into a completed rack. Furthermore,all such known plastic racks include conventional hinging structures,including hinge pins, for individually hingedly connecting the usualspaced arms of the rack which support the rolls to the usual back plateof the rack which, in turn, is employed to mount the entire rack on awall. Although the gures will vary slightly depending upon the precisetime they are compiled, it is presently estimated that known moldedplastic paper tow'elling racks can me manufactured at a cost to sell ata retail level of between titty-nine to sixty-nine cents a rack.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved molded plasticpaper towelling rack which is exceedingly simple in construction andeasy to manufacture, and therefore, which may be made to be sold for asignificantly lower price than that of known comparable devices.

The object of the invention is accomplished in one form by providing amolded plastic papertowelling rack in the form of a unitary structurethat can be molded in one piece in its final form.

Other objects and further details of that which I believe to be noveland my invention will be clear from the following description and claimstaken with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a paper towelling rack embodyingthe invention shown in position as mounted on a wall and supporting aroll of paper towelling, the latter being outlined in phantom lines;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational View of the rack shown in an inoperativecondition;

FIG. 3 is an elevational view of the rack looking from the bottom ofFIG. 2 and showing in dotted lines the arms of the rack disposed inoperative positions;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary rear elevational view of the rack;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially on line 5 5 of FIG. 2,and

FIG. 6 is a view on a reduced scale showing a moditied form of theinvention.

FIGS. 1-5 illustrate a principal embodiment of the invention, whereinthe improved unitary paper towelling rack is designated generally byreference character R. In FIG. l it will be observed that rack Rgenerally comprises unitary structure comprising a main mounting backplate 10 and a pair of spaced arms 12 which are arranged to support aroll T of paper towelling. FIG. 1, therefore, illustrates the operativecondition of the rack R. FIGS. 2-5 illustrate various views of the rackR in its inoperative condition.

With reference to FIGS. 2-5 it will be observed that when the rack R isin the inoperative condition it is constructed and positioned in thefollowing manner: Back plate 10 comprises an elongated member having asomewhat rectangular central portion 14 which is planar and includesspaced, parallel top and bottom upstanding rearwardly extendingflange-like, short walls 16 which are generally perpendicular to centralportion 14 and include rearward edges 1S which are straight, coplanarand arranged to contact a wall when the rack is mounted thereon.Approximately at the Corners of the rectangular central portion 1 4 aredisposed mounting screw openings 20 which are formed through masses 22of solid material formed at the corners of the central portion extendingcompletely frorn front to back of the rack (see FIG. 4). On the rearwardside of the central portion 14 a network of interconnecting web-like,short walls 24 is formed to provide structural strength for the centralportion, the rearward edges of these walls being coplanar with the edges1S, and therefore, arranged to also contact a wall on which the rack ismounted.

The central portion 14 is somewhat elongated and at its opposite endsthere is integrally formed therewith towel roll supporting arms andassociated supporting structure therefor including integral web hinges.A description of one of theseformations will suice to constitute adescripthe central portion 14 there is formed a planar extension 26,about the periphery of which is formed a rearwardly extending flange 28which is shorter than the walls 16 (see FIG. 3). A three-sided openingSuis formed in each portion 26 comprising a pair of spaced, paralleledges 32 and a connecting arcuate edge 34 at adjacent ends of edges 32.About the three-sided opening 30 and rearwardly extending therefrom is aange-like wall 36, portions 38 of it being straight, parallel and'spacedfrom portions of wall 28, and a portion 4t) at and connecting adjacentends of portions 36 and being arcuate to conform to the curvature of theopening 30 at that point. At what would normally be the fourth side ofthe opening Sti on the rearward side of the portion 26 is formed astraight rearwardly extending ange-like wall 42.

Arms 12 are configured to generally conform tothe shape of thethree-sided openings 3i) when viewed from the front elevation, as inFIG. 2, and to b'e disposed over these openings. An end of each arm 12includes a straight ange-like wall 44 which connects the arm to theportion 26. Each arm 12 is integrally formed with and connected to aportion 26 by an integral thin web 4d (see FIGS. 4 and 5). tions of therack and capable of easy repeated ilexure in normal operation. Theremainder of the arms 12 are structurally free of the portions 26.Therefore, the arms 12, though integrally formed with the rack R, arehingedly connected to portions 26 and selectively pivotal relativethereto.

The arms 12 in addition to including the straight walls 44, each includea bent front wall 48 comprising a generally dat rectangular wall portion50 adjacent wall 44,' a rectangular flat inclined wall portion 52, and aat wall portion 54 having an arcuate end that is generally parallel towall portion 50 and supports centraliy on its rearward side a tubularcollar 56. At opposite sides of the arms 12 the wall 44 and wallportions 50 and 52 are connected by flange-like side walls 58.

As can best be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, when the rack R is in theinoperative condition, the arms 12 occupy positions wherein they projectat a slight angle from the main plane of the back plate 1t). In theinoperative condition the rack is compactly collapsed, and this is aconvenient condition in which to manufacture, package and ship the rack.To eiect the operative condition of the rack, the arms 12 are pivotedaway from the back plate and each other until they are substantiallyparallel; with reference to FIG. 3, the left hand arm 12 is pivotedcounterclockwise and the right hand arm 12 isl pivoted clockwise to thedotted line positions. In this condition the col- Each web 46 is thinnerthan its adjacent porn eg) lars 56 are substantially coaxial anddisposed to function as hubs for a conventional roll of paper towelling,which `wardly. This constructionfurther facilitates lexure of the arms12 when removing or mountingla roll of paper toweliing and permits, ifabsolutely necessary, a certain placing it with a fresh full roll ofpaper towelling. Therefore, in usage it is normally contemplated thatrolls of paper towelling will be successively mounted on the installedrack as needed. Therefore, the hinges between the arms 12 and theportions 26 of back plate'lt must flex a large number of times duringtheir normal life ex-V pectancy.

One of the important features of the invention which permits the entirerack to be formed in a single piece is that of providing hinges betweenthearms and back plate in the form of hinge webs 46 that can beintegrally formed with the entire rack by molding plastic materials. Ithas been found in practice that unitary rackshaving integral hinge websmay be conveniently formed by known injection molding techniquesutilizing Vpolypropylene as the plastic material out of Vwhich the rackis, molded. practice it has been found that with a towelling rack havingthe approximate rough overall dimensions of a length of twelve andone-sixteenth inches, a width of three and nine thirty-secondths inchesand an overall thickness of approximately seven-eighths'rof an inch,with wallV thicknesses varying in thev range of three thirty-secondstooneeighth of an inch, hinge webs having a cross-sectional thickness of.010 inch plus or minus .002 inch, have proved eminently successful.scribed have been subject to gruelling life tests and have survived over3,000,000 llexures without any fracture.

Furthermore, towelling lracks formed as just described may be currentlymanufactured to retail at less than 50% of the price of knownplural-partV plastic or metal towelling racks which include conventionalhinge means.

In addition to the very important structural Vfeature of providingintegral hinge webs which enable the entire rack to be formed in aunitaryv piece, the invention includes anl other important` structuralfeaturewhich should be recog-V v nized. This structural feature isconcerned with the be forced apart; for example, sofas to be separatedmore than they are illustrated in dotted lines in FIG. 3 to allow thecore of the roll ofV towelling to clear the collars 5rd. This inventionincorporates the concept of principally providing for ilexure in thearms themselves, and the construction of arms l2, as described, permitssuch iiexure. With reference to FIG. 3 it should be observed that theportions of the arms 12 which support the collars 56 are' substantiallyflat, thin and relatively flexible, whereas the remaining portions ofthe arms 12 comprising the'wall portions 50 and 52, and walls 44 and 58provide a substantially rigid boxy structure. Therefore, there is alineA of fiexure indicated schematically by reference character X in thevicinity of where wall portions 52. and 54@ join, and in operation whenit is attempted to force the arms i2 apart farther than they areillustrated in FlGJ. 3, flexure may occur in the arms transverselythereof along the lines X; It will also be observed in FlG. 3 that inmount- Inv Racks formed asjust de amount of relative flexure between theportions 26 and the central portion 10.

In FlG. 6 there is illustrated a modification of the invention whereinin lieu of openings Ztl and mounting screws, a plurality of magnets 60`are mounted in the back plate and operative to the rearfthereof whichwill enable the -towelling rack to be secured to a ferromagnetic walledsupport. The rack R' is otherwise similarV in all respects to the rackRillustrated in FIGS. 1-5, and therefore, corresponding parts areindicated by similar reference numerals with a prime added.

As will be evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of myinvention are not limited to the particular details of construction ofthe examples illustrated,

ing therack to a walllike support, only the rearward edges and lcontemplate that various and other modications and applications willoccur to those skilled in the art. It is, therefore, my intention thatthe appended claims shall cover such modifications and applications asdo not depart from the true spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. An article supporting rack comprising: a plate-like member; means forsecuring said member to a planar support; a pair of spaced arms; meanshingedly securing said arms to said member so as innormaluse of saidrack to be individually readilyand repeatedly pivotall between positionswherein they are closely adjacent and substantially parallel to saidmember and positions wherein they are substantially perpendicularthereto; said last named means comprising a separate straight flexibleweb connecting each arm to said member that is thinner than the adjacentportions of said rack; and means on said arms for supporting an articlebetween said arms; said rack being Y entirely a one-piece unitarystructure made of a nonrnetallic plastic material.

2. A rack asdeiined in claim'l wherein said arms include means capableof flexing on a transverse line intermediate the ends" thereof.

3. A rack as defined in claim 1 wherein said supporting means comprisesa pair of spaced tubular collars carried by said arms and arranged tosupport a tubular article.

4. A rack as defined in claim y1 wherein said member securing meanscomprises magnetic means.

5. A rack as defined in claim '1 whereiny said unitary structure isformed of polypropylene'.

` 6. A rack as delined in claim 1 wherein said rack is formed so saidarms normally lie closely adjacent to said plate-like member when saidrack does not support anV article. y 7. A one piece unitary articlesupporting rack formed of a moldable non-metallic plastic .materialcomprising:

van elongated back plate; means on said back plate for securing it to aplanar support; a pair of spaced arms hingedly secured to said backplate near opposite ends thereof by thin straight flexible webs ofreduced cross-sectional thickness relative to the adjacent portions ofsaid rack and adapted in normal operation to be readily'and rev peatedlyindividually pivoted between positions wherein each of said arms havinga tubular collar disposed near its free end, saidrcollars arranged tobefaligned and face each other to support opposite ends of a tubulararticle between said arms.

8. `A rack as defined in claim 7 wherein said arms include means forminga transverse flexure line intermediate their ends when stressed.

(References on following page) References Cited n the le of this patentUNITED STATES PATENTS Farrell Feb. 27, 1912 Boynton Dec. 6, 1927Noisinger Jau. 8, 1935 Krueger NOV. 26, 1940 Fischer Sept. 2, 1941 6Sanford Mar. 6, 1945 Gauthier July 30, 1957 Sarro Mar. 24, 1959 WiszukAug. 9, 1960 Shanok et a1 Apr. 4, 1961 Ridge Sept. 19, 1961 Fisher Mar.6, 1962 Mayer June 12, 1962

1. AN ARTICLE SUPPORTING RACK COMPRISING: A PLATE-LIKE MEMBER; MEANS FORSECURING SAID MEMBER TO A PLANAR SUPPORT; A PAIR OF SPACED ARMS; MEANSHINGEDLY SECURING SAID ARMS TO SAID MEMBER SO AS IN NORMAL USE OF SAIDRACK TO BE INDIVIDUALLY READILY AND REPEATEDLY PIVOTAL BETWEEN POSITIONSWHEREIN THEY ARE CLOSELY ADJACENT AND SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAIDMEMBER AND POSITIONS WHEREIN THEY ARE SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULARTHERETO; SAID LAST NAMED MEANS COMPRISING A SEPARATE STRAIGHT FLEXIBLEWEB CONNECTING EACH ARM TO SAID MEMBER THAT IS THINNER THAN THE ADJACENTPORTIONS OF SAID RACK; AND MEANS ON SAID ARMS FOR SUPPORTING AN ARTICLEBETWEEN SAID ARMS; SAID RACK BEING ENTIRELY A ONE-PIECE UNITARYSTRUCTURE MADE OF A NONMETALLIC PLASTIC MATERIAL.